On the afternoon of Feb. 19, a drunk illegal immigrant crashed his vehicle into that of 42-year-old Sandra Duran, a mother, daughter and sister who, sadly, died on the scene in North Hills, Los Angeles.
The man who needlessly took Duran’s life was Estuardo Alvarado, 45, a five-times-deported illegal immigrant with a lengthy criminal record who was fleeing the scene of another accident. He now faces five felony counts, including murder and gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, according to the Los Angeles Daily News.
For one of Duran’s relatives, Los Angeles Police Department officer Lisa Morales, the circumstances surrounding her death were very disturbing.
“It’s a great concern because this could have been prevented,” she said, pointing to Alvarado’s status as a five-time deportee. “It’s sad and it’s unfortunate. It’s going to happen not just to my family but to other families.”
She had a point, though strangely enough this point was not as obvious to Duran’s father, Santos Duran.
Speaking with the Los Angeles Times, he admitted to being haunted by the thought that his daughter’s death could have been avoided, yet he worried that Alvarado’s actions might be used as a political weapon against other illegal immigrants.
“It’s ruined our life. This person had DUIs and deportations,” he said. “But whatever I say now isn’t going to bring my daughter back. I worry, I worry about the people that are here already and settled here already and have families already and have their kids in school. I worry for those people.”
But do those people worry about him and his family? One would think not, given their fierce opposition to any law that might help prevent this sort of tragedy from occurring.
Consider Kate’s Law, which would mandate prison sentences for illegal immigrants who either re-enter the United States more than three times or who re-enter after being convicted of an aggravated felony.
According to the Daily News, Alvarado has been charged with more than 20 felonies and misdemeanors since 1990. Yet he was repeatedly allowed to return to the U.S. and commit more crimes.
Had laws like Kate’s Law been on the books, Alvarado might have been occupying a prison cell on Feb. 19 instead of driving drunk on the streets of North Hills. Yet because of opposition from the Democrat-supported illegal immigrant community, which claims Kate’s Law is racist, that was not the case.
Source: ConservativeTribune